Envelope for registered mail matter



. LEARY 1 f Q O09 2 fr 1M w E N 1 f k.f m A g m M @Z m mf uw L M l n W Patented Nov. 28, 1922.

UNITED STATES WALLACE I. LEAARY, 0F CREEDE, COLORiADO.

ENVELOPE FOR REGISTERED MAIL MATTER.

Application led March 28, 1921. Serial No. 456,059.

To aZZ whom. t 722mg/ concern.:

Be it known that I, laurier l. LEARY. a citizen of the United States, residing at Creede, in the county of Mineral and State of Colorado, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Envelopes for Registered Mail Mattel', of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates' to envelopes, and the object of the invent-ion is the provision of envelopes which are particularly designed for use with registered mail matter.

The present way of handling registered matter by the Post Office Department is as follows: A letter is taken to the postoffce to be registered and the postmaster is, in most cases, not only requested to register the package or envelope, b-ut is also told that a re turn card or receipt is demanded from the party to whom the envelope or package is addressed. The postmaster then fills in the name of the sender upon a return card and attaches this return card to the envelope or package by clips or paper fasteners and the package or envelope is then sent on its way. Inasmuch as the return postal card is entire- \ly separate from the envelope or package and is merely attached thereto by clips, it follows that there is considerable chance for this card to become detached and lost in the mails, which, in fact, very commonly happens. Under these circumstances, the postmaster at the destination of the package has to make out a new card for the package so that the sender may receive a return card. rlhus much labor and time is taken up by the necessity of making a request to the postmaster for the return card and the making out b-y the post-master of the return card. Many misunderstandings regarding this return card happen. The postmaster may fail to understand that a return card is wanted and thus the sender fails to receive a receipt from the party to whom the registered matter is addressed. The sender may fail to advise the post-master that he wants a return card, when he actually does want one, and later on a difference may come upas to whether a return card was demanded or not. In this case it is often necessary to write to the party to whom the package or letter is sent requesting to know if the registered letter has been received promptly, etc.

The object of my invention is to do away with this necessity by the provision of an envelope with a return card attached thereto and forming part thereof, and which return card is preferably filled in by the sender of the registered letter but may be stamped by the postmaster at the Sallie time that the letter is registered and which issentwith the letter. cannot become detached therefrom except under rather extraordinary conditions, and which card may be readilv detached from the envelope and returned to the sender by the postmaster at the receiving station. This does away with a lot of work, facilitates the business of dispatching and delivering mails of this character, and there can be no question then as to whether a return card is demanded or not. When the sender does not desire a return card, it. may be very readily detached before the envelope is registered.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein z- Figure 1 is a front elevation of an envelope constructed in accordance with my invention;

Figure 2 is a rear? elevation of the same;

Figure 3 is a section on the line 3 3 of Figure 1; v

Figure ishows a different manner of attaching the return card or receipt to the envelope.

Referring to these drawings, it will be seen that I have illustrated an envelope of practically ordinary form consisting of the front 10, the sealing flap 11, the back flap 12, and an end flap 13 at one end of the front flap, which end flap is gummed. The

back flap is turned in, as at 14, opposite the turned in end of the front flap and is gummed so that the back flap and the front flap may be joined at the ends. Attached to the back flap or the front flap, but illustrated as formed with the front flap, is a register return card, designated 15, or return receipt, which may be made of heavy paper, cardboard pasted to the envelope, or it may be of thin paper of the same character as that of the envelope.

This return receipt 15 is to have on it the data ordinarily found on the' return receipt or return card as put out by the Post Oilice Department. Thus on one face of this receipt will be the name of the sender and the street and number and name of the postoflice from which the letter was sent and the registered number of the article. The opposite face of the return receipt will have i the ordinary data, i. e., that the signer has received from the postoffice the registered or msured article numbered in accordance with the number on the tace of the card and this return receipt is to be signed by the add ressee or his agent with the date of delivery so that this return receipt or return card may be returned to the sender whose name l appears on the opposite face of the card or Y the envelope may be weakened in any manner, as by punctures, indentations, scoring or the like. I do not Wish to be limited to the particular manner of making up the envelope, though the principle I have illustrated is. I believe, very simple and convenient and permits the return receipt to be made in one piece with the envelope.

In Figure 4 I show a fragmentary sectional view of an envelope in which the return receipt 15a is disposed between the front and rear portions of the envelope instead of being formed integral with the front of the envelope, as in Figure 3. Otherwise than this, the construction shown in Figure 4 is precisely the same as that shown in Figures l, 2 and 3. A

I claim:

1. An envelope comprising two main portions for'ming the back and front of the envelope respectively, a sealing l'lap carried by the front portion of the envelope and extending longitudinally thereof, the rear portion of the envelope having at oneend an end closing flap inwardly folded and adhesively connected with the inner face of Alateral continuation having on one face the -address of the sender and the number of the article and on the reverseface having a receipt intended to be signed by the addressee, the paper at the junction of the return receipt and the body of the envelo e being weakened to permit the ready detac ment of the return receipt from the body of the envelope.

2. An envelope comprising two main aps forming the back and front of the envelope respectively, a sealing flap and end flaps closing the ends of the envelope, one of the main flaps being laterally continued to fonn a return receipt, thisv lateral continuation having on one face the address of the sender and the number of the article, and on the reverse face having a receipt intended to be signed by the addressee, the paper at the junction of the return receipt and the body of the envelope being weakened to permit the ready detachment of the return receipt from the body of the envelope.

In testimony whereof I hereunto afliX my signature.

WALLACE I. LEARY. 

